Cape Town-based musician and artist Zander Blom is once again showing at Cape Town's Stevenson Gallery. A new show, simply entitled 'New Paintings', will be his sixth solo show with the gallery. For this exhibition, his most divulging, he 'followed the medium instead of trying to make it follow me'.
Known for his expression of modernism through the eyes of a young person living in a politically and socially interesting Johannesburg at the inception of the 21st century, Blom’s new work is an extension of exactly that. 'I have believed in the idea of perpetual change as a vehicle for innovation and discovery in painting for a long time,' confesses Blom. 'Even though the overarching themes in my work have much remained the same over the last decade, my style and techniques have gone through many transformations.'
Blom characteristically creates modular forms in paint or printmaking that are then constructed and deconstructed whilst being documented at all stages. The documentation, in the form of photography, is mostly staged in his home. 'My current home studio is more or less the shape of a shoebox. One-third of the shoebox is the safe side, a painting-free zone with a couch, coffee table and two working tables. The other two-thirds is full of canvas and paint,' he says.
By his own declaration he decided early on in his career to be a 'productive, prolific and non-suicidal artist' following his own whims and impulses. His new expression collects this awareness and reveals some of his inner workings – including what he calls 'cabin fever' in his studio.
Despite the deceptively simple title 'New Paintings', Blom's new show is his most divulging yet. Pictured left: Untitled [1.767], 2016. Right: Untitled [1.763], 2016
Blom's art is conceived through the eyes of a young person living in a politically and socially interesting Johannesburg. Pictured: Untitled [1.760], 2016
Blom explains, 'I have believed in the idea of perpetual change as a vehicle for innovation and discovery in painting for a long time.' Pictured: Untitled [1.761], 2016
By his own declaration, he decided early on in his career to be a 'productive, prolific and non-suicidal artist' that follows his own whims and impulses. Pictured: Untitled [1.765], 2016
INFORMATION
'Zander Blom: New Paintings' is on view until 9 April. For more information, visit the Stevenson Gallery's website
Photography courtesy the artist and Stevenson Gallery
ADDRESS
Stevenson Gallery
Buchanan Building
160 Sir Lowry Road
Woodstock 7925
Cape Town
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